Line #25 VideoGame/BombermanHero


1	[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bomberman-hero-cover_4573.PNG]]
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3	''Bomberman Hero'' is a 1998 installment in the ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'' franchise for the Platform/Nintendo64, and the second Bomberman game on the console after ''VideoGame/Bomberman64''.
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5	The game follows our hero on a mission to rescue [[SaveThePrincess Princess Millian]] from the evil Garaden Empire. He is assisted occasionally by plucky robot companion Pibot, RidiculouslyCuteCritter Louie, and a quartet of new vehicles as he explores six planets, some familiar and some brand new. So yes, the story is just Bomberman meets ''Franchise/StarWars''.
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7	''Hero'', unlike most ''Bomberman'' games, is a straightforward action PlatformGame, and it is one of the few ''Bomberman'' games that allows the titular hero to jump freely. This is partially due to the game originally being planned as a new addition to the ''Videogame/{{Bonk}}'' series, until it was decided the game should be focused on Bomberman.
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9	!!This game provides examples of:
10	* ActionizedSequel: Bomberman can jump, his bombs explode immediately upon touching enemies instead of just being timed explosions, there is only one puzzle in the entire game (and it's easy), and emphasis is placed on ranged combat.
11	* AdvertisedExtra:
12	** The Bomber Slider is actually used in a measly two levels, one of which can be skipped entirely. Very underused in comparison to the Bomber Jet and the Bomber Marine. The Bomber Copter at least gets to be used in a boss fight. Considering how handling vehicles tends to be, this can hardly be called a bad thing.
13	** Despite being shown on the cover, Black Bomberman only shows up three times: in the last training level, a later level to blow up a wall and open the path for you, and finally in the GoldenEnding congratulating White Bomberman.
14	* BigBad: [[spoiler:Evil Bomber]] is the acting ruler of the Garaden Empire who masterminds the kidnapping of Princess Millian and the plot to [[spoiler:resurrect [[GreaterScopeVillain Emperor Bagular]]]], all to get revenge on Bomberman for defeating him prior.
15	* BonusStage: Has one after each of the first 4 bosses, in the form of simple timed areas with gems, power-ups and 1-ups to grab.
16	* BossOnlyLevel: All the bosses in the game are fought in their own self-contained arena stages.
17	* BossRush: The last planet of the standard game, Garaden Star, is a BossOnlyLevel bonanza where Bomberman has to confront alternate versions of all the bosses in the game up to that point (including a "Best-of" final match with Nitros halfway through) before he confronts [[spoiler:Bagular]] in a SequentialBoss fight in the star's last stage.
18	* BuildLikeAnEgyptian: Several levels on Kanatia.
19	* BrainwashedAndCrazy: [[spoiler:Nitros.]] He snaps out of it after your final battle with him.
20	* CaptainErsatz: Almost every major character in ''Bomberman Hero'' is a CaptainErsatz to a ''Franchise/StarWars'' character.
21	* CatGirl: Natia. With weird hair, too... and a GIGANTIC head.
22	* ChasingYourTail: The [[Art/TheSphinx Sphinx]]-like Bolban has an armored front and a vulnerable tail. In the second battle, both his frontal shield and his breath weapon are disabled, but his missiles are harder to avoid because you're fighting him in an underwater tunnel.
23	* CirclingBirdies: When Bomberman loses all of his health and he loses a life, he has stars circling around his head before he falls on his back and dies. he also has swirling swirls for eyes too.
24	* CognizantLimbs: [[spoiler:Bagular's final form]] has two force field generators on his arms protecting his head. Destroy both his arms, and his head becomes vulnerable.
25	* ContinuingIsPainful: Deaths are actually mostly merciful in this game, as only single powerups are lost after each death. [[InvertedTrope This game actually inverts this trope]], because what ''really'' hurts is turning ''off'' the game (or getting a GameOver): power-ups and health expansions are not saved when you quit, so the next time you start the game, you have to collect everything all over again. This isn't an issue in the JP version.
26	* ConvectionSchmonvection: [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] a bit for the first couple of levels near lava, where you must enter cooling capsules to refill your health as you gradually take damage from the heat.
27	* CripplingOverspecialization: The Salt Bombs. They're the only bombs effective on the slug enemies, but they're useless on everything else. They can't even destroy crates.
28	** The Ice Bombs are used to freeze certain enemies to create platforms, but that's it.
29	* DefeatEqualsExplosion: Every boss except Nitros, Natia, and [[spoiler:Evil Bomber]] dies in a massive explosion.
30	* DieLaughing: After enough hits, Baruda laughs...then explodes.
31	* DifficultyByRegion: Certain bosses take less hits in the JP version, in addition pretty much every level has a much lower par score requirement for a 5, not necessitating collecting every single item in the level. You can also collect an item in a level and leave immediately but still keep it, useful if you just need a flame up or full health and know where to find one quickly. In addition, health expansions and collected gems are remembered after the game ends or is shut off, leaving a bit of mystery as to why that is not saved in the international version.
32	* DolledUpInstallment: ''Bomberman Hero'' was originally going to be a new ''Bonk'' game, but at some point or another, the staff decided it'd have more mass appeal as a ''Bomberman'' game. Sure explains why it's a mainstream 3D platformer where Bomberman can actually jump on his own.
33	* TheDragon: Natia has more presence in the story than the other bosses (save for Nitros), and in fact is the one who realizes the Garaden Empire's EvilPlan of ressurecting [[spoiler:Bagular]]. She's also the last of the Four Devils to be fought, both in the main game and the BossRush at Garaden.
34	* DualBoss: Both fights with Nadia have you confronting her and a friend of hers. In the first fight in Mazone Star, you fight her and Cronus together, and the second fight with her at the end of the BossRush in Garaden Star pits you against two Nadias.
35	* DubNameChange: Prime to Primus, Warudosu to Garaden, Pipot to Pibot, Rooi to Louie, Endl to Endol, Baluda to Baruda, Nekia to Natia, Megani to Cronus, Bonbori Star to Bomber Star (Planet Bomber's moon), [[spoiler:and Devil Bomber to Evil Bomber]].
36	* EvilLaugh: Every major boss but Bolban, who [[RoarBeforeBeating roars]] instead. Also, [[spoiler:Bagular. Well, [[UnEvilLaugh as well as an old cyborg man can do an evil laugh]], anyways]].
37	* FakeDifficulty: Rears its head when the goal is getting a 5 on Waterway, due to that stage hiding an item behind a fake wall that is indistinguishable from any other wall in a game that '''never''' has fake walls under any other circumstance.
38	* GravityIsAHarshMistress: The animation for falling into a BottomlessPit is this on every level, with Bomberman flailing about in midair for a couple of seconds before finally plummeting.
39	* GuideDangIt: This game doesn't really tell you that you need to collect all Adok Bombs and/or get 5's on every level (including boss stages) in order to get to the true final level and boss. Not to mention Adok Bombs aren't found in every level meaning you could be searching an entire level only to figure out there aren't any Adok Bombs there.
40	* HundredPercentCompletion: Getting 5's on every level, and by extension every Gold Medal for each planet, [[BonusFeatureFailure unlocks bonus minigames in the options menu]].
41	* KingMook: A giant lobster, Geodude, and manta ray each serve as a MiniBoss.
42	* [[LethalLavaLand Lethal Lava Planet]]: Half of Kanatia.
43	* MonsterClown: One of the enemies in the fittingly-named Clown Valley. It balances on a ball and throws knives.
44	* MusicalNod: The main menu theme is lifted straight from the Famicom/NES ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNB8V1NPYc0 Bomberman]]'', although split in half and with the addition of what sounds like a fax machine.
45	* OneHitPointWonder: An early aversion to this in the franchise. Bomberman is given four bars of health at the start, and the player can add up to four additional bars by collecting 200 crystals. That is, until you turn the game off.
46	* OurMonstersAreWeird: Thoroughly, even by platform-game standards, or even ''Bomberman'' standards for that matter. Just look at Endol, the electric robot catfish monster!
47	* PlatformGame: One of the few in the franchise.
48	* QuirkyMinibossSquad: The Four Devils of Garaden: the catfish-esque robot, Endol, the annoying big bird, Baruda, the sphinx-like Bolban, and the lusty catgirl Natia with her pet robo-spider Cronus.
49	* RecurringBoss: Nitros. For the first three planets, he's fought at the end of the second area, but on Mazone, he's fought at the beginning of the third instead. He is also the middle fight on Garaden, [[spoiler:after which point he snaps out of his brainwashing and heals Bomberman]].
50	* SecretLevel: ''Bomberman Hero'' has a surprising amount of these, including [[spoiler:revisiting a flying and underwater stage on foot as the Golden Bomber (plus a new level), a snowboard race against a snowman enemy, a second collection quest, a few completely new stages on Bomber Star accessed by mashing Start as you boot up the N64, a treasure hunt, and the planet Gossick]].
51	* SequentialBoss: The fight with [[spoiler:Bagular]] first has Bomberman fight him personally, then he uploads his mind to a computer that then becomes the target with two decoy screens to distract you, and finally said computer attaches itself to a tank with arms; you have to destroy the arms of the tank before you can attack the computer again.
52	* SingleBiomePlanet: Primus (a swampy/forested planet) and Kanatia (the LethalLavaLand and BuildLikeAnEgyptian mixture, although there are a couple of crystal cave levels there). However, it appears that Planet Bomber is very Earth-like (with an emphasis on mountains) and Mazone has a small jungle at its equator (considering it was a snowy planet).
53	* TheSmurfettePrinciple: ''Bomberman Hero'' goes with the DamselInDistress Princess Millian and the token female villain Natia, with Millian being [[SaveThePrincess the important part of the plot]] and Natia being just some big help to the BigBad.
54	* {{Snowlems}}: One of the later-game enemies, complete with CoolShades.
55	* SpellMyNameWithAnS: [[spoiler:Bagular may be unrecognizable to non-Japanese fans who previously knew him as [[VideoGame/Bomberman94 Buglear/Bagulaa]] or [[VideoGame/SuperBomberman Bugler/Buglar]]. The Bagular translation would later be reused in ''VideoGame/BombermanPortable'', while ''VideoGame/SuperBomberman R'' rendered it as Buggler.]]
56	* SuperDrowningSkills: Especially irritating, where MercyInvincibility does not protect Bomberman from losing a block of health from falling in water and then leaping back out... and then it's {{averted\|Trope}} with the Marine Bomber gear in certain levels.
57	* TrueFinalBoss: [[spoiler:Devil Bomber/Evil Bomber is the '''real''' FinalBoss of the game, in a plot twist that comes out of literally nowhere. You cannot fight Devil Bomber/Evil Bomber unless you unlock Gossick Star and its three stages, with Devil Bomber/Evil Bomber fought in a BossOnlyLevel in the last stage.]]
58	* UnderwaterBossBattle: The rematch with Bolban takes place underwater, using the Bomber Marine.
59	* UnexpectedShmupLevel: Several levels make use of the Bomber Marine and Bomber Jet, which are specifically designed to turn their levels into this.
60	* UniqueEnemy: Many enemies get reused eventually, but some are exclusive to a certain level, like the spinning hands in Death Temple and the clowns in Clown Valley.
61	* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler:Evil Bomber]] orchestrated the whole plot.
62	* WhipOfDominance: The villainess Natia fights with a whip while also commanding her spider-bot pet Cronus. She also has {{dominatrix}} overtones thanks to her skimpy black leather getup.
63	* YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: Played obnoxiously straight. In fact, the whole plot of the game could be summed up as the Garaden Empire constantly dangling Princess Millian over Bomberman's head as he desperately tries to reach her.

Context VideoGame / BombermanHero